Saturday, June 27, 2020
Friday, June 26, 2020
Soul Health XIV
Mandatory REGISTRATION to attend mass; Patronal Mass online tomorrow
If you wish to attend mass at St. Thomas More parish this summer, YOU MUST REGISTER BELOW THIS WEEKEND. Registration and details below. First:
Patricia (Trish), our parish secretary, successfully underwent surgery yesterday and is recovering in hospital. Please keep her in your prayers. During her 6 weeks of convalescence, Claudette has agreed to volunteer to handle all admin matters.
Our next and possibly last online mass will be available on our website tomorrow, Saturday, at 4pm. This is our annual Patronal Festival: St. Thomas More, Martyr. The special mass intention is for Fr. George Oakes. Join us!
Re-opening our parish
Whether or not you are hoping to attend mass this summer, we need your help. Please offer 3 minutes of your time to complete this questionnaire this weekend:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TZQC6PS
Thanks to the over half of you that have. Tomorrow volunteer callers will begin calling our parishioners who don’t have email to complete the questionnaire for them and register them for mass attendance. Then we’ll know if we require additional masses to maintain the cap of 50 persons, and when to offer them.
The parish re-opening committee has determined that to re-open the parish requires upwards of 20 volunteers to be present, spread out across different masses. Offer yourself in the questionnaire.
St. Thomas More, our patron, Pray for us, as we together endeavor to re-open to celebrate our Lord
Fr. Robert+
Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
If you wish to attend mass at St. Thomas More parish this summer, YOU MUST REGISTER BELOW THIS WEEKEND. Registration and details below. First:
Patricia (Trish), our parish secretary, successfully underwent surgery yesterday and is recovering in hospital. Please keep her in your prayers. During her 6 weeks of convalescence, Claudette has agreed to volunteer to handle all admin matters.
Our next and possibly last online mass will be available on our website tomorrow, Saturday, at 4pm. This is our annual Patronal Festival: St. Thomas More, Martyr. The special mass intention is for Fr. George Oakes. Join us!
Re-opening our parish
Whether or not you are hoping to attend mass this summer, we need your help. Please offer 3 minutes of your time to complete this questionnaire this weekend:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TZQC6PS
Thanks to the over half of you that have. Tomorrow volunteer callers will begin calling our parishioners who don’t have email to complete the questionnaire for them and register them for mass attendance. Then we’ll know if we require additional masses to maintain the cap of 50 persons, and when to offer them.
The parish re-opening committee has determined that to re-open the parish requires upwards of 20 volunteers to be present, spread out across different masses. Offer yourself in the questionnaire.
St. Thomas More, our patron, Pray for us, as we together endeavor to re-open to celebrate our Lord
Fr. Robert+
Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
Saturday, June 20, 2020
Special Soul Health XIII: parish re-opening news
Give me Your grace, good Lord, to set the world at nought, to set my mind fast upon You
To think my worst enemies my best friends
To have continually in mind the passion that Christ suffered for me; for His benefits incessantly to give Him thanks.
St. Thomas More, Martyr
1. If you wish to attend mass at St. Thomas More parish this summer, YOU MUST REGISTER BELOW BY WEDNESDAY. NO EXCEPTIONS. Details below. First:
2. Patricia (Trish), our nearly indispensable parish secretary, will be undergoing surgery on Thursday. Please keep her in your prayers. Her recovery time is estimated at 6 weeks. She has been serving our parish daily for 40 years!!
3. Our next and possibly last online mass will be available on our website next weekend. It will be the annual mass of our Patronal Festival, St. Thomas More, Martyr. The special mass intention will be for Fr. George Oakes. It will run approximately 40 minutes; the homily will speak directly to the children in Confirmation prep, who will then be gathering online again next Sunday.
Re-opening our parish
The provincial government has given permission for re-opening churches with a maximum of 50 persons in the building at one time. The Archdiocese has done immense preparation for this moment so that the health and safety of the faithful can be paramount. Thus re-opening our parish will be a complex process, including determining how many weekly masses we will have to satisfy parishioners while strictly respecting the cap of 50 persons. In order to determine this, and for you to register for mass attendance so we don’t exceed the cap, you must fill out the questionnaire by next Wednesday, Feast of The Birth of St. John The Baptist:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TZQC6PS
Additionally, in these ways: re-opening for mass, aiming for July 11, turns on your support:
**The parish re-opening committee which has already met twice, has determined that to be compliant the parish requires upwards of 20 volunteers to be present, spread out across different masses. Offer yourself in the questionnaire.
**Once you complete the questionnaire, please call other parishioners you know who do not have internet (over 60% of our parishioners), completing the online questionnaire for them by next Friday.
**Offer in the questionnaire to be one of the volunteers who will then call the remaining parishioners to do the same beginning Saturday.
Let’s by the grace of God work together to re-open our parish!
And commit all this to your prayers:
Have continually in mind the passion that Christ suffered for you; for His benefits incessantly give Him thanks.
St. Thomas More, Pray for us
Fr. Robert+ Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
To think my worst enemies my best friends
To have continually in mind the passion that Christ suffered for me; for His benefits incessantly to give Him thanks.
St. Thomas More, Martyr
1. If you wish to attend mass at St. Thomas More parish this summer, YOU MUST REGISTER BELOW BY WEDNESDAY. NO EXCEPTIONS. Details below. First:
2. Patricia (Trish), our nearly indispensable parish secretary, will be undergoing surgery on Thursday. Please keep her in your prayers. Her recovery time is estimated at 6 weeks. She has been serving our parish daily for 40 years!!
3. Our next and possibly last online mass will be available on our website next weekend. It will be the annual mass of our Patronal Festival, St. Thomas More, Martyr. The special mass intention will be for Fr. George Oakes. It will run approximately 40 minutes; the homily will speak directly to the children in Confirmation prep, who will then be gathering online again next Sunday.
Re-opening our parish
The provincial government has given permission for re-opening churches with a maximum of 50 persons in the building at one time. The Archdiocese has done immense preparation for this moment so that the health and safety of the faithful can be paramount. Thus re-opening our parish will be a complex process, including determining how many weekly masses we will have to satisfy parishioners while strictly respecting the cap of 50 persons. In order to determine this, and for you to register for mass attendance so we don’t exceed the cap, you must fill out the questionnaire by next Wednesday, Feast of The Birth of St. John The Baptist:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TZQC6PS
Additionally, in these ways: re-opening for mass, aiming for July 11, turns on your support:
**The parish re-opening committee which has already met twice, has determined that to be compliant the parish requires upwards of 20 volunteers to be present, spread out across different masses. Offer yourself in the questionnaire.
**Once you complete the questionnaire, please call other parishioners you know who do not have internet (over 60% of our parishioners), completing the online questionnaire for them by next Friday.
**Offer in the questionnaire to be one of the volunteers who will then call the remaining parishioners to do the same beginning Saturday.
Let’s by the grace of God work together to re-open our parish!
And commit all this to your prayers:
Have continually in mind the passion that Christ suffered for you; for His benefits incessantly give Him thanks.
St. Thomas More, Pray for us
Fr. Robert+ Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
Sunday, June 14, 2020
Soul Health XII: Experience “Love, for us!”; Next online parish mass
In the Eucharist we “renew the memory of that incomparable love for us which Christ revealed in His passion” on the cross.
St. Thomas Aquinas, 12th century
who developed the liturgy for today’s
Feast of Corpus Christi – The Body and Blood of Christ
Dear sisters and brothers in the Body of Christ,
1. This morning we enjoyed our first online gathering for Confirmation catechesis. It was great to be together as the Body of Christ, even virtually, with some of the parish families! We’ll continue every other week through the summer.
2. I shared with the parents part of a beautiful reflection on today’s feast by our own Episcopal Vicar, Fr. Raymond Lafontaine, at the bottom of this page. For more, and his parish mass, and to make your spiritual communion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUjJYqoyq
3. A couple of parents have asked if First Communion catechesis might continue virtually. If your child is part of the First Communion gatherings, please email me your thoughts on this.
4. The next online liturgy should be up in 2 weeks. That will be the mass for our Patronal Feast of St. Thomas More, Martyr. It will be offered with special intention for Fr. George Oakes.
5. To produce that mass, we need volunteers to read, and to video even using a phone. Also someone who can advise on how to record the sound with our audio system would be helpful. Only a handful of you replied to the 2-minute questionnaire on whether you wanted these masses. You can still complete it here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DVXKKXZ. In the meantime, all online masses will speak directly to the children in Confirmation prep.
6. We need two more volunteers for the de-confinement planning committee, which would help the parish reopen more quickly. Thanks to those who have come forward, we got off to a great start last week, meeting online. We will be part of diocesan webinars on the matter this week in English and French. More info in next week’s Soul Health.
7. For a host of excellent spirituality opportunities, see this morning’s Grapevine:
https://tinyurl.com/y97bztpt
Together in Christ,
Fr. Robert+
Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
Dear friends, fellow members of the Body of Christ!
…Today, we commemorate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. We are a Eucharistic people. In receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, we are transformed from within: we become Christ’s Body and Blood, our lives broken for others, poured out in loving service of all humanity. In this time of pandemic, when so many of us have been deprived of sacramental communion for nearly three months now, how are we called to celebrate this feast?
As I speak to parishioners and others following our online celebrations, I hear that they appreciate them very much, but they still look forward to our being all together again, so that we can celebrate Mass together, pray and sing together, receive communion together. Perhaps this time of imposed sacramental fasting has been for all of us a reminder of how easy it is to take the Eucharist for granted.
And yet, if this is literally Christ's body broken for us, Christ’s blood poured out for us, each day of our lives, we are challenged on this day to recognize both the awesome nature of the gift of the Eucharist, and the challenge which it presents in our own lives as Catholic Christians, to live as his Body in the world. This includes paying attention to those “members of the Body” who are most vulnerable at this time, the victims of racism, of all forms of injustice, those who are sick, isolated, addicted, neglected, or unwanted. All must be treated with respect and dignity…
Fr. Raymond Lafontaine, E.V.
St. Thomas Aquinas, 12th century
who developed the liturgy for today’s
Feast of Corpus Christi – The Body and Blood of Christ
Dear sisters and brothers in the Body of Christ,
1. This morning we enjoyed our first online gathering for Confirmation catechesis. It was great to be together as the Body of Christ, even virtually, with some of the parish families! We’ll continue every other week through the summer.
2. I shared with the parents part of a beautiful reflection on today’s feast by our own Episcopal Vicar, Fr. Raymond Lafontaine, at the bottom of this page. For more, and his parish mass, and to make your spiritual communion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUjJYqoyq
3. A couple of parents have asked if First Communion catechesis might continue virtually. If your child is part of the First Communion gatherings, please email me your thoughts on this.
4. The next online liturgy should be up in 2 weeks. That will be the mass for our Patronal Feast of St. Thomas More, Martyr. It will be offered with special intention for Fr. George Oakes.
5. To produce that mass, we need volunteers to read, and to video even using a phone. Also someone who can advise on how to record the sound with our audio system would be helpful. Only a handful of you replied to the 2-minute questionnaire on whether you wanted these masses. You can still complete it here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DVXKKXZ. In the meantime, all online masses will speak directly to the children in Confirmation prep.
6. We need two more volunteers for the de-confinement planning committee, which would help the parish reopen more quickly. Thanks to those who have come forward, we got off to a great start last week, meeting online. We will be part of diocesan webinars on the matter this week in English and French. More info in next week’s Soul Health.
7. For a host of excellent spirituality opportunities, see this morning’s Grapevine:
https://tinyurl.com/y97bztpt
Together in Christ,
Fr. Robert+
Pastor, St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
Dear friends, fellow members of the Body of Christ!
…Today, we commemorate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. We are a Eucharistic people. In receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, we are transformed from within: we become Christ’s Body and Blood, our lives broken for others, poured out in loving service of all humanity. In this time of pandemic, when so many of us have been deprived of sacramental communion for nearly three months now, how are we called to celebrate this feast?
As I speak to parishioners and others following our online celebrations, I hear that they appreciate them very much, but they still look forward to our being all together again, so that we can celebrate Mass together, pray and sing together, receive communion together. Perhaps this time of imposed sacramental fasting has been for all of us a reminder of how easy it is to take the Eucharist for granted.
And yet, if this is literally Christ's body broken for us, Christ’s blood poured out for us, each day of our lives, we are challenged on this day to recognize both the awesome nature of the gift of the Eucharist, and the challenge which it presents in our own lives as Catholic Christians, to live as his Body in the world. This includes paying attention to those “members of the Body” who are most vulnerable at this time, the victims of racism, of all forms of injustice, those who are sick, isolated, addicted, neglected, or unwanted. All must be treated with respect and dignity…
Fr. Raymond Lafontaine, E.V.
Sunday, June 7, 2020
Soul Health XI: LOVE! Trinity Sunday; More online parish masses?
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
(John 3:16, today’s Gospel for the feast of the Holy Trinity)
Pope Francis reflecting on God the Holy Trinity: “God is not indifferent – he’s close and personal” “The Trinity is therefore Love, all at the service of the world, which he wishes to save and recreate.”
1- When are we re-opening the Church? The first step is for a de-confinement committee to meet next week. Thanks to those who have come forward. We need a couple more volunteers to begin meeting online. Directives are beginning to come in, the second tab at:
https://tinyurl.com/yd9wtjtt
2- Watch this 2-minute video of Pope Francis on the killing of George Floyd and “the sin of racism”:
https://tinyurl.com/y9nh2zxr
3- Parents of children in Confirmation preparation have received an email with a survey so we can continue gatherings online next weekend – please complete the survey! It may involve producing weekly parish masses.
4- Should we offer more online masses as we did at Pentecost? It turns on your view, so please take a couple of minutes to share your thoughts anonymously:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DVXKKXZ
5- To produce last weekend’s mass, we had to import a couple of volunteers from other parishes: Mark Boyer on the guitar who grew up at St. TM, and Patrick on the video camera from our neighbors St. Jean de Brebeuf in Lasalle. If we are to produce another mass, we require a parish volunteer to video and one for audio. Please contact me.
6- An excellent opportunity to enliven your spiritual life. I began today with this 7-day Unleashing Fire retreat, on the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit in our life, 30 minutes each:
https://tinyurl.com/yc7h5dvb
7- A particular thanks to all who continue to support the parish financially. While April givings were right on budget, except for the Easter collection, May was down 25%.
8- You may receive this email twice or thrice today, as I’m working on trying to overcome some transmission issues. I welcome feedback on these Soul Health emails (in the survey above), or anything else.
I’m off to the altar to offer this Trinity Sunday mass with special intention for all of you.
Prayer to the Holy Trinity
Glory be to the Father, Who by His almighty power and love created me,
making me in the image and likeness of God.
Glory be to the Son, Who by His Precious Blood delivered me from hell,
and opened for me the gates of heaven.
Glory be to the Holy Spirit, Who has sanctified me in the sacrament of Baptism,
and continues to sanctify me by the graces I receive daily from His bounty.
Glory be to the Three adorable Persons of the Holy Trinity, now and forever.
Amen.
Fr. Robert Pastor,
St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
Pope Francis reflecting on God the Holy Trinity: “God is not indifferent – he’s close and personal” “The Trinity is therefore Love, all at the service of the world, which he wishes to save and recreate.”
1- When are we re-opening the Church? The first step is for a de-confinement committee to meet next week. Thanks to those who have come forward. We need a couple more volunteers to begin meeting online. Directives are beginning to come in, the second tab at:
https://tinyurl.com/yd9wtjtt
2- Watch this 2-minute video of Pope Francis on the killing of George Floyd and “the sin of racism”:
https://tinyurl.com/y9nh2zxr
3- Parents of children in Confirmation preparation have received an email with a survey so we can continue gatherings online next weekend – please complete the survey! It may involve producing weekly parish masses.
4- Should we offer more online masses as we did at Pentecost? It turns on your view, so please take a couple of minutes to share your thoughts anonymously:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DVXKKXZ
5- To produce last weekend’s mass, we had to import a couple of volunteers from other parishes: Mark Boyer on the guitar who grew up at St. TM, and Patrick on the video camera from our neighbors St. Jean de Brebeuf in Lasalle. If we are to produce another mass, we require a parish volunteer to video and one for audio. Please contact me.
6- An excellent opportunity to enliven your spiritual life. I began today with this 7-day Unleashing Fire retreat, on the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit in our life, 30 minutes each:
https://tinyurl.com/yc7h5dvb
7- A particular thanks to all who continue to support the parish financially. While April givings were right on budget, except for the Easter collection, May was down 25%.
8- You may receive this email twice or thrice today, as I’m working on trying to overcome some transmission issues. I welcome feedback on these Soul Health emails (in the survey above), or anything else.
I’m off to the altar to offer this Trinity Sunday mass with special intention for all of you.
Prayer to the Holy Trinity
Glory be to the Father, Who by His almighty power and love created me,
making me in the image and likeness of God.
Glory be to the Son, Who by His Precious Blood delivered me from hell,
and opened for me the gates of heaven.
Glory be to the Holy Spirit, Who has sanctified me in the sacrament of Baptism,
and continues to sanctify me by the graces I receive daily from His bounty.
Glory be to the Three adorable Persons of the Holy Trinity, now and forever.
Amen.
Fr. Robert Pastor,
St. Thomas More Parish Verdun
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